Monday, February 27, 2006

Synchronicity-coined by Carl Jung, it describes "'temporally coincident occurences of acausal events'...it is the experience of having two (or more) things happen simultaneously in a manner that is meaningful to the person or people experiencing them, where that meaning suggests an underlying pattern. It differs from coincidence in that synchronicity implies not just a happenstance, but an underlying pattern or dynamic that is being expressed through meaningful relationships or events."

Apophenia-coined by Klaus Conrad, it is the "'unmotivated seeing of connections' accompanied by a 'specific experience of an abnormal meaningfulness'". Basically seeing something in nothing.

Very well, it is likely that I am just crazy. But aren't those just the neatest words?

Thursday, February 23, 2006

I think it's interesting that Icelandic speaking women were identifying with Freyja as a symbol of liberation and choice back in 1898. They were giving her a role in their fight for equal suffrage with men. Hmm.

Kinnear, Mary. "The Icelandic Connection: "Freya" and the Manitoba Woman Suffrage Movement." Canadian Woman Studies: An Introductory Reader. Edited by Nuzhat Amin, Frances Beer, Kathryn McPherson, Andrea Medovarski, Angela Miles, and Goli Rezai-Rashti. "In 1898, Margret and Sigfus together began publishing Freyja ('woman'), a Icelandic-language pro-suffrage paper. Its first issue in 1898 stated that "matters pertaining to the progress and rights of all women will always be our first and foremost concern." http://www.gov.mb.ca/wd/publications/whm2004.pdf

Sunday, February 19, 2006

I had a curious thought about the meaning of the name Höðr and so I sought some answers via google.

Apparently, there's also a word höð,which means "battle" and in its form mean something like "killer." Since Höðr killed Baldr, though accidently, the name fits in a literal sense. I got these answers through Wikipedia, one of the best online encyclopedias I've found.

Snorri, in his Prose Edda, mentions him. "One of the Aesiris named Hödr: he is blind. He is of sufficient strength, but the gods would that no occasion should rise of naming this god, for the work of his hands shall long be held in memory among gods and men."

Váli, born of Odin and Rindr, slew him to avenge Baldr. Hödr finds his way to Hel and at some point after Ragnarok, Baldr and Hödr will sit and speak together about "their secret wisdom".

There's not a whole lot else on him that I've found. I think it's interesting that Baldr holds no ill will towards him after Ragnarok, after Hödr was slain by Váli as an act of vengence. When I find more information about him, perhaps flesh out the story a little, I'll post it. Off to read more on Tyr.

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Try this, it might be fun, then you pick five words and I'll fill in some for you.

A Johari window is a metaphorical tool intended to help people better understand their interpersonal communication and relationships. It is used primarily in self-help groups and corporate settings as a heuristic device to encourage people to open up to another in self-disclosure. The concept was invented by Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingram, who combined their first names to create the name of the tool and has led to the spinoff Nohari window.

The test consists of a list of terms, each of which is an adjective relating to a personality trait. (For example, the list might begin with "accepting", "adaptable", "bold", "brave", "calm", "cheerful", and "complex".) A subject will select a few of these terms which he feels describes himself best. Each of his peers will then select a few terms which that person feels describes the subject best. From Wikipedia